Beloved for his hilarious and unexpectedly moving novels, Bruce Coville is also a master of the short story. In this follow-up to Oddly Enough, he again presents a collection of unusual breadth and emotional depth. A ghost who died under uproarious circumstances haunts a kitchen baking “Biscuits of Glory,” while in the grand tale “The Golden Sail,” there are unexpected consequences when a young teen goes in search of his seafaring father. The collection includes a heartbreaking new story from Mr. Elives’ Magic Shop, “The Metamorphosis of Justin Jones,” and the bittersweet title story from the critically acclaimed anthology Am I Blue? A perfect introduction to Bruce Coville’s magic for the uninitiated, Odder Than Ever also has a treat for his die-hard fans: three never-before-published stories.
Bruce Coville was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1950. His family lived in farm territory, about twenty miles north of Syracuse. Bruce grew up around the corner from his grandparents' dairy farm, where he spent a great deal of time as a child, dodging cows and chores to the best of his ability. As a young reader he loved Mary Poppins and Dr. Dolittle, and still has fond memories of rising ahead of the rest of his family so he could huddle in a chair and read THE VOYAGES OF DR. DOLITTLE. He also read lots of things that people consider junk (Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and zillions of comic books). His only real regret is the time he spent watching television, when he could have been reading instead. (A mind is a terrible thing to waste!)
His first book, THE FOOLISH GIANT, was published in 1978. It was illustrated by his wife, Katherine, whom he had married in 1969. This was followed in 1979 by SARAH'S UNICORN, also illustrated by Katherine. After a long period of working separately, the Covilles began collaborating again with SPACE BRAT and GOBLINS IN THE CASTLE, both published in 1992.
Before getting published Bruce earned his living as a toymaker, a gravedigger, a cookware salesman, an assembly line worker, and finally as an elementary school teacher (second and fourth grades). He left teaching in 1981 to devote himself to becoming a full time writer - though it took another five years to achieve that goal!)
Bruce has published nearly 100 books, which have appeared in over a dozen countries around the world and sold more than sixteen million copies. Among his most popular titles are MY TEACHER IS AN ALIEN, INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS, and THE MONSTER'S RING. In 2001 he founded Full Cast Audio, an audiobook company dedicated to creating unabridged, full cast recordings of the best in children's and young adult literature.
